The World Cup 2026 is barely a day old, but already the tournament is fighting a losing battle against optics and anger. Thousands of empty red seats could be seen throughout the stadium during South Korea's win over Czech Republic — a grim visual that came on the same day Fifa president Gianni Infantino had defended the organisation's dynamic pricing policy on the eve of the tournament.
The empty rows in Guadalajara were a humiliating sight for Fifa, which introduced variable pricing for the first time in World Cup history. The move drove up the cost of the cheapest standard finals tickets to $5,785 (£4,315), with some tickets hitting resale pages for close to $33,000 (£24,621). A belated attempt to fix the mess saw prices cut in an under-the-radar move across all 104 matches, and 70 percent of bulk-reserved hotel rooms were released. But on the eve of the tournament, around 180,000 tickets were still listed on official Fifa resale platforms, with 15,000 group-stage tickets available directly through its site.
“Thousands of empty seats and fury over ticket prices overshadow World Cup 2026 as Canada and USA prepare to debut.”
Scotland boss Steve Clarke did not hold back. He called the ticket allocation "a joke" and warned that fans could drive themselves into debt just to attend. The anger is not confined to ticket prices. USA coach Mauricio Pochettino has publicly criticised the "mandatory" three-minute water breaks scheduled during each half of every game, regardless of temperature. "When the conditions are good it is not necessary to have water breaks," he said.
More frustrations are brewing off the pitch. The head of the Palestinian Football Association, Jibril Rajoub, is in Mexico City awaiting permission to enter the United States for World Cup events, despite being accredited. He attended the opening match between Mexico and South Africa and told the Associated Press: "I don't believe that it's fair to use or to abuse and deny the right of all footballers all over the world to attend." He is among several international football officials denied US visas or still waiting for approval.
Today, the spotlight turns to the other co-hosts. Canada face Bosnia and Herzegovina at Toronto Stadium in Toronto at 3pm local time (8pm BST), while the USA take on Paraguay in the late kick-off. Donald Trump looks set not to attend. The tournament is the biggest in history — 48 teams, 104 matches spread across three countries and four time zones — but the opening games have already left a sour taste.